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This lemon chicken white bean soup recipe is light, healthy, and flavorful! It has pasta, veggies, beans, and plenty of tender chicken in a bright lemony broth.
I think you will also enjoy my Chicken Pot Pie Soup or this Italian Sausage Orzo Soup next for more easy, cozy comfort food.
Why you’ll love it
This soup was inspired by my Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup. I love a lemon broth in soups, and it adds something so special and bright to chicken soup in particular! White beans make it hearty and filling, and this soup has plenty of vegetables like spinach and carrots.
Since we’re using leftover/already cooked chicken and pantry ingredients in this soup, that makes it extra hassle free. It comes together in under 40 minutes, so this white bean chicken soup works great for a weeknight dinner. No fancy ingredients needed here.
What you’ll need
- Olive oil – for sautéing
- Celery, carrots, onion, garlic – a tasty base to any soup. I like sweet (Vidalia) onions here.
- Flour – it helps to make the broth a little more substantial (along with the starch released from the pasta).
- Chicken broth – for savory depth
- Italian seasoning – I use this tasty blend of dried herbs in so many recipes!
- Beans – we’re using white (cannellini) beans
- Pasta – I love a smaller shape here like macaroni or even ditalini
- Chicken – for convenience we’re using rotisserie or leftover Baked Chicken
- Lemon – you can add more lemon juice than suggested or even zest a whole lemon into the soup
- Spinach – for a pop of freshness
Helpful tip
- You can swap the macaroni for a different pasta if you like. I prefer the small, shorter shapes for this recipe. Orzo would work too. I didn’t include a ton of pasta, so you can definitely add a cup or more if you want a heartier soup, but you may then need to add a bit more broth (especially when reheating leftovers). Or you could double the beans and leave the pasta out altogether!
How to make lemon chicken white bean soup
This is an overview, and full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
- In a soup pot, sauté the onion, celery, and carrots until softened. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, then stir in the flour. Pour in the chicken broth, stirring so the flour dissolves.
- Add the Italian seasoning, beans, and pasta. Bring to a boil. Stir, cover with the lid slightly ajar, then simmer gently for about 10 minutes, stirring every so often.
- Add the chicken, lemon juice, and spinach. Cook until it’s heated through. Season with salt & pepper as desired.
Substitutions and variations
- Rosemary (fresh or dried) would work well in this soup if you want a more herby flavor. If you happen to have some fresh herbs, you can definitely throw ’em in.
- This soup is pretty forgiving, so feel free to use up whatever veggies you happen to have on hand.
- If you are sensitive to salt, use low sodium chicken broth.
What to serve with this soup
- This chicken and white bean soup is a great meal in itself, so just round it out with a slice of fresh crusty bread, a dinner roll, or go all out with a slice of Cheesy Garlic Bread.
- For a salad, I recommend this simple Parmesan Arugula Salad, or make a salad with my Homemade Italian Dressing. It’s so tasty!
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- This is the cutting board I use to chop up the veggies.
- I like using this Le Creuset Dutch oven for making soups, but this Amazon Basics Dutch oven is an inexpensive, quality alternative!
- Don’t have a sturdy ladle you love yet? Try this OXO ladle.
Leftovers and storage
- The pasta in this soup will soak up the broth. Add extra chicken broth to leftovers as needed. If you’re planning on freezing/not eating the bulk, I recommend cooking the pasta separately and adding it just prior to serving.
- Store leftovers for 3-4 days in the fridge in a covered container, or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat over a low heat until warmed through.
If you made this lemon chicken white bean soup, leave a star rating and review below! Tag me #saltandlavender on Instagram so I can see your creations as well.
Lemon Chicken White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 sticks celery chopped small
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 medium carrots peeled & chopped small
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 (15 fluid ounce) can white beans drained
- 3/4 cup uncooked macaroni or ditalini pasta
- 2 cups cooked/rotisserie chicken
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice (or more, to taste)
- 2 cups (packed) fresh baby spinach
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the oil, celery, onion, and carrots to a soup pot and sauté over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes.
- Add in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Stir in the flour and cook for about a minute.
- Slowly pour in the chicken broth while stirring so the flour dissolves.
- Add in the Italian seasoning, white beans, and pasta. Turn the heat up to high and let the soup come to a boil.
- Give it a stir, and then cover the pot with the lid slightly ajar. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes (stir it a couple of times to ensure the pasta isn't sticking to the bottom of the pot as it cooks).
- Add in the chicken, lemon juice (I add 2+ tablespoons since I like it very lemony), and spinach. Cook for another few minutes until it's heated thorough and the spinach has wilted. Season with salt & pepper as needed.
Notes
- Leftovers will soak up the broth, so you may need to add more chicken broth when reheating.
- Sensitive to salt? Use low-sodium chicken broth.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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That was delicious and light! Had had no spinach so left it out just added a few more veggies 🙂 Threw some parmesan cheese on it and so gooood.
Wonderful!! Thanks for your review, Susan!
So delicious! I added extra beans and lemon juice. Perfect for weekly lunch meal pro!
I’m thrilled you enjoyed it, Stephanie! Thanks for your review!
Great recipe, I swapped the pasta for more of the beans, and it turned out great. Appreciate how simple it was to make, my first attempt at cooking soup at home and it turned out great
Wonderful! Thanks, Brooke!
This is a very good chicken soup recipe (and I’ve made many good ones in almost 60 years of cooking). The lemon is excellent in it. I made it as written and just added a fair amount of Rosemary, which is a favorite. Thank you for the recipe!
Thank you so much!! I’m thrilled you enjoyed it, and I appreciate your review, Allison!
Love this recipe!!! I make a different soup recipe every week. This is simple and very nutritious with all my favorite ingredients. I used basil and thyme for seasoning and I also zested my lemon to add for more flavor. Definitely will be a frequent recipe this winter!!! yummyyyyy
I’m thrilled you enjoyed this one, Dawn!
Made this yesterday and my toddler and I loved it! Will definitely be making again 🙂 super easy and will be in rotation in my house. I might try kale instead of spinach next time just to try out a slightly different texture/flavor! Love your recipes Natasha!
I’m thrilled it was a hit, Lindsey, and that you’ve been enjoying my other recipes too!! 😀 Thank you for your 5-star review – I really appreciate it.
Everyone likes this recipe!! My family loves it and my coworkers are interested when I bring it for lunch!
I love that!! 😀
I don’t like lemon in my soup, so I didn’t put any in it and it was very good. The one thing I would change is cooking the noodles ( I used orzo) in a separate pan, then put the orzo in the soup. It was very hearty and delicious with loads of flavor.
So glad you liked it, April!